Tuesday, 21 May 2013

Erased but not forgotten

Jeff Peirce at the Rap Sheet
features an extensive interview
with PI Thriller Writer Thomas Kaufman, an author who started his career
behind the camera lens – and we’re sure you’ve seen some of his work. With his
recently released eBook collection Erased and
Other Stories , it’s time to sample his written work, with the
Willis Gidney thrillers Drink the
Tea and Steal the
Show. Help support Shots by buying these remarkable PI thrillers from the
links [above] from our online bookstore [in partnership with Amazon].

Here’s an extract from the
interview –

AK: Tell us a little about you
series lead, Willis Gidney. Where did he spring from? And why use Washington, D.C.,
as the stories’ backdrop?

TK: Let’s answer your question
with a question: Are you troubled by unsightly back story? Do you wish those
troubling details could all be erased?

That’s what I thought when I was creating Willis Gidney. Why bother with back
story? Just invent a guy who doesn’t have one. So Willis Gidney is a product of
an author’s laziness. I decided to make his early life forgotten. Since I’d
worked on Promises to Keep, I thought it’d be a good idea for Willis to
have grown up homeless. Traumatic childhood, memory gone. Problem solved,
right?

Wrong. It turned out I had quite a bit of research to do, relating not
only to homelessness, but also D.C.’s juvenile justice system. Of course, this
was a good thing in the long run, but lots of heavy lifting. Hey, I got into
this racket for the easy money and loose women. Still waiting for both, I’m
afraid.

AK: I hear that George
Pelecanos, another writer who uses the U.S. capital as a backdrop, enjoys
your work.

TK: George has said nice things
about what I’m doing. He’s one of the best writers in America, in my
humble opinion. He’s also a neighbor, and over the years he’s offered solid
suggestions and insights about what I’m writing. George’s D.C. is different
from mine, but that’s because we’re different people. I love his work, and
reading his descriptions of D.C. is like reading great reportage. The only
other writer I've read who is as insightful about D.C. is Edward P. Jones (check
out his Lost in the City).

AK: Recently, Scottish author Ian Rankin, when he was being interviewed
by the BBC about the return of protagonist John Rebus [in Standing
in Another Man’s Grave], said that he might not get on with Rebus if he
actually met the man. Might that same thing be true if you encountered Willis
Gidney in a bar?

TK: Willis has got some issues, but it would be hard not to like the
guy. I often think of him as a nephew who doesn’t take advice terribly well.
But I think we’d get along. We’re a lot alike. In fact, if I were taller,
younger, better looking, and had faster reflexes, we could be twins.